1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a means, method, and apparatus for allowing voters who are blind or otherwise disabled to use election ballots without needing to see the ballot. More specifically, the invention provides a balloting system which presents and holds an election ballot while allowing a voter to cast and inspect votes. The system provides audible or tactile feedback when voting targets are probed with a wand or other pointing means. The feedback can comprise information pertaining to a candidate at a position on the ballot. The feedback can also comprise information pertaining to a mark that may or may not have been made on the ballot.
2. Background of the Invention
Most recent work on handicapped access to voting systems has assumed that direct recording electronic (DRE) voting machines are required if a reasonable standard of accessibility for handicapped voters is desired. DRE voting machines are an electronic implementation of the mechanical lever systems. As with the lever machines, there is no ballot; the possible choices are visible to the voter on the front of the machine. The voter directly enters choices into electronic storage with the use of a touch-screen, push-buttons, or similar device. An alphabetic keyboard is often provided with the entry device to allow for the possibility of write-in votes. The voter's choices are stored in these machines via a memory cartridge, diskette or smart-card and added to the choices of all other voters. (Federal Election Commission at http://www.fec.gov/pages/dre.htm)
The primary object of this invention is an optical mark-sense voting system that can meet reasonable standards for handicapped accessibility. This system can allow most blind and otherwise disabled voters to cast votes and to inspect votes cast using marks on a commonplace paper ballot designed for machine tabulation using a mark-sense tabulation system. The system can also readily be adapted for use with punched-card ballot systems, or other types of ballot systems. Additionally, the system can be adapted for use in betting in lotteries, racetracks, educational testing, and any other context where punched-card, mark-sense, or equivalent forms are used.
The complete system disclosed by the present invention is comprised of a plurality of tools, some of which meet the needs of only one class of handicap, while others meet the needs of broad ranges of handicaps. The present invention is capable of using existing ballot designs and can therefore be deployed without substantial expenditure. The total cost of the complete suite of tools may be substantially less than other alternatives.